There are essentially two methods for manufacturing ethylenediamine industrially. Most of the production capacity is based on dichloroethane; however, this process produces sodium chloride contaminated with amines, making it difficult to recycle. Thus the manufacture of amines from ethanolamine is an attractive method provided that the ethanolamine-ammonia reaction is conducted in the presence of an effective, selective, and long-lived catalyst.
Catalysts based on magnesium oxide have been proposed, but they have been found to deteriorate when they come into contact with the reaction medium; hydration of the magnesium substrate causes a loss of mechanical strength and a rapid decline in activity.